WASHINGTON—Barack Obama took a big step toward the Democratic presidential nomination with an easy victory in North Carolina, and Hillary Clinton narrowly won Indiana and loaned $6.4 million out of her own pocket to help keep her struggling campaign alive.
The outcome of Tuesday's primaries helped Obama widen his lead over Clinton in the grueling Democratic duel for the right to face Republican John McCain in November's presidential election with just six nominating contests remaining.
A Clinton campaign source said she loaned $6.4 million to her campaign in the past month. It was the second time she has had to dip into her personal fortune to fund her struggling presidential bid.
Both candidates looked ahead to contests in West Virginia on May 13 and in Oregon and Kentucky a week later, but Clinton is nearly out of opportunities to change the course of the race.
"We have seen that it's possible to overcome the politics of division and distraction, that it's possible to overcome the same old negative attacks that are always about scoring points and never about solving our problems," Obama said at a victory rally in Raleigh, North Carolina.
The Illinois senator's 14-point victory in North Carolina was a dramatic comeback from a difficult campaign stretch that began last month with a big loss in Pennsylvania and was prolonged by the controversy over racially charged comments by his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright.
The results meant Clinton missed her best chance to narrow Obama 's lead in pledged delegates who will help pick the nominee at the Democratic Party's August convention.
Looking Ahead to November
"This fall, we intend to march forward as one Democratic Party, united by a common vision for this country," said Obama , 46, who would be the first black U.S. president.
Clinton won Indiana by fewer than 23,000 votes out of more than 1.25 million cast, taking the state by 51 to 49 percent. She had hoped to win the state by a bigger margin but vowed to keep up the fight.
"It's full speed on to the White House," the New York senator said at a victory rally in Indianapolis, with her husband, former President Bill Clinton, standing behind her. "We've got a long road ahead but we're going to keep fighting."
The 60-year-old former first lady, who would be the country's first woman president, asked the Indianapolis crowd for donations to keep alive her campaign, which has been heavily outspent by Obama .
Early on Wednesday, Clinton headed to West Virginia where polls show she is in the lead. "For too long, we've let places like West Virginia and Kentucky slip out of the Democratic column ... I intend to win them in November in the general election," she said on Tuesday.
Delegate Counts for U.S. Presidential Candidates
Delegates at national party conventions in August and September will be the key to selecting the Democratic and Republican candidates who will face off in the U.S. presidential election on Nov. 4.Voters choose the delegates state by state.
Sen. John McCain of Arizona has won enough delegates to become the Republican nominee, while the Democratic contest remains close between Sens. Barack Obama of Illinois and Hillary Clinton of New York.
Here are the total number of delegates awarded so far in nominating contests to the leading candidates, as estimated by MSNBC. Other news organizations may have reached different estimates.
- Democrats (number needed for nomination 2,025)
- Barack Obama 1,876
- Hillary Clinton 1,729
- John McCain 1,266
Republicans (number needed for nomination 1,191)
How Delegates Are Awarded
Democrats distribute delegates in proportion to candidates' votes statewide and in individual congressional districts. That means candidates can come away with big chunks of delegates even in states they lose.
In contrast, most Republican states award their delegates on a winner-take-all basis.
There are 217 delegates left to be chosen in the remaining six state-by-state contests. In addition to those elected state by state, a certain number of delegates at the conventions are set aside for elected officials and other leading party figures.
These "superdelegates" are not committed to a particular candidate and can back anyone they choose.
The number of superdelegates fluctuates at times, if someone resigns or if a new official with superdelegate status is elected somewhere in the country. The number just increased by one because there was a special election in which a Democrat was elected. That Democrat counts as a new superdelegate.
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